Sunday, 6 July 2014

TOUR OF THE UNIVERSE

With media partner BBC Sky at Night Magazine

I have been invited to team up with rocket scientist Neil Phillipson and some of the UK's most renowned astronomers to co-present a show with a difference - TOUR OF THE UNIVERSE! - with media partner BBC Sky at Night Magazine.

Special guest include Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock, space scientist, and Dr Chris Lintott, astronomer, both presenters of the BBC's Sky at Night television programme.

Also joining us will be Dr Rhodri Evans, Honorary Research Fellow of Cardiff University, Mark Thompson, astronomer, author and presenter of BBC's Stargazing Live and Will Gater, astronomer, presenter, author and journalist for the BBC Sky at Night magazine.

Neil says: "The show is a night like no other - we take our audience on a whistle-stop journey through space and time, sharing the incredible nature of the Universe in a humorous, passionate and inspiring way."

Stunning planetarium-style presentations provide the backdrop to an intimate and uniquely insightful look at the wonders of the cosmos, touching on frequently overlooked fundamentals and guiding the audience to a jaw-dropping appreciation of the night sky. Alongside Neil and our special guests I intend to bring the images alive with an interactive, light-hearted and illuminating approach.

TOUR OF THE UNIVERSE launches at Dorking Halls on 4th October 2014 with nine other national theatre venues to follow, including Nottingham, Altrincham, Liverpool, Southport, Portsmouth, Cardiff, Bath and Peterborough.

Full details are available on the official TOUR OF THE UNIVERSE website (see below) as well as via national media, Facebook, Twitter and other social media sites!

Wednesday, 2 July 2014

Welcome to my blog!

Feel free to 'drop in' any time to catch my monthly radio appearances on Uckfield 105FM with presenter Tony Williams where we share all things astronomical, and have a great deal of fun along the way! Simply click the Uckfield 105FM icon at left.

In yesterday's show - Monday 4 August - we discussed the two most distant red giant stars recently discovered in our Milky Way Galaxy's outer halo; a whopping 750,000 and 900,000 light-years away!

Also on the menu was ESA's exciting Rosetta mission whereby a spacecraft is about to rendezvous with, orbit around, and drop a lander - Philae - on the surface of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko - a mission we shall follow closely in forthcoming shows. I shall be join Richie Jarvis on Astronomy FM at 8.00pm on 17 August where I shall be privileged to join a live link-up with some of the key scientists working on the Rosetta Mission - more to follow.

Also enjoyed on our radio show was the discussion on the dramatic 'mega Moon' about to make its closest approach to Earth for many years at circa 8.00pm on 10 August. From there we shared the delights of the Perseid Meteor shower, due to peak on 12 August, when, despite the Full Moon, some fast bright meteors and possible fireballs will still be visible as they blaze across the night sky. And finally, the thrilling conjunction of Venus and Jupiter pre-dawn on 18 August. Seen against the backdrop of M44, the Beehive Cluster, the fact that these two dazzling planets will appear a mere 15 arcminutes apart should make for an amazing sight. My alarm clock will be set!

In addition to the exciting news about TOUR OF THE UNIVERSE - a national astronomy tour with media partner BBC Sky at Night magazine (see above) - details of other exciting events in which I am privileged to be involved will also appear here ... so dip in any time and join me for the start of more astronomical adventures!

It's that time again! Feel free to listen in to a recording of today's radio show where, with presenter Tony Williams, we share the delights of the summer Milky Way, the mighty Andromeda Galaxy and many other galaxies beyond my recollection - and much more besides!